1. Field
The invention relates to methods for controlling and treating obesity using non-surgical means and specifically by reduction of or inhibition of the production of ghrelin the appetite generating hormone.
2. Related Art
Obesity has become an epidemic problem in Western societies contributing to several disease processes including metabolic diseases, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. Adipogenesis is defined as the formation of fat or fatty tissue, the development of fat cells from pre-adipocytes. Obesity is a severe chronic syndrome characterized by excessive accumulation of fat. Patients with abdominal obesity are often prone to diseased conditions such X-syndrome (insulin resistant diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and disorders of lipid metabolism), and abdominal obesity becomes one of the potent risk factors of early arteriosclerosis, ischemic heart disease, and cerebrovascular disease.
Urbanization of countries' populations with associated sedentary lifestyles and intake of rich foods on a normal basis has led to an increase in obesity in the general population. The chronic obese segment of the population now stands close to 30% in the US and other developed countries. This has created an increase in associated illnesses leading to increase in health care costs across these countries.
There are multiple aims for treatment for obesity. A first aim is to reduce weight by burning excessive fat or reduce absorption of food that can be converted to fat; a second aim is to improve a metabolic imbalance in patients.
Today, there are a number of surgical methods for treatment of obesity, such as an implantable balloon device to stretch the stomach wall and simulate satiety during eating, thereby reducing the amount of food intake of the patient. Another surgical method used to reduce food intake and absorption requires reducing the size of the stomach itself by using gastric band with or without electrical stimulation, removal of part of the intestines to reduce food absorption, etc. Though these surgical methods have been available for control of obesity for some time now, the number of even acutely obese patients who opt for such procedures have been very small and hence the success of controlling obesity in the general population by these methods have been limited.
Alternate treatment by medication has also been proposed to limit and control food intake and absorption. Most of these medications have side effects that are not acceptable to the using public. Hence, this type of treatment has also not been too well received.
Since obesity has been recognized as a major problem, other methods for controlling it, that are more acceptable to the public have been under investigation and need to be identified. A large number of studies have focused on use of chemical agents and gene identification aspects to control obesity. Others have looked at nerve excitation and sensation removal as treatment for obesity.
Accordingly, what is needed is a non-surgical way, that is minimally invasive, to treat obesity that is acceptable to the obese population and can be easily implemented.